Kars is a village on the Rideau River within Rideau-Jock Ward in the city of

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Prior to joining the city in 2000 it was part of Rideau Township.

History

Kars was originally named Wellington Village. In 1857, to distinguish it from another settlement called Wellington in Prince Edward County, because mail intended for one often went to the other, the village was renamed Kars in honour of the Turkish town’s valiant stand against Russian troops during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

. By 1866, Kars was a post village with a population of 200 of the township of North Gower, on the Rideau River, from the line of the Ottawa and Prescott Railway. It contained four general stores, and one steam sawmill, established by A. J. Eastman, in 1852, which had the capacity of turning out of sawed lumber per annum; a brewery owned by A. J. Eastman & Co., with a production capacity of forty barrels per week; a tannery, two wagon shops, a cooperage, a school, a hotel, two churches - Church of England, frame, erected by John Eastman, Esq, and presented to the Church Society, and the Wesleyan Methodist church, frame. Mails tri-weekly. The Loyal Orange Lodge, No. 520, met in the Orange Hall, on the first Tuesday in each month.Ottawa City and counties of Carleton and Russell Directory, 1866-7 The Rideau River is part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

Rideau Canal. Kars is along the longest uninterrupted section of the River between locks at Long Island in

Manotick Manotick ( ) is a community in Rideau-Jock Ward in the rural south part of the City of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is a commuter town, suburb of the city, located on the Rideau River, immediately south of the suburbs Barrhaven, Ontario, B ...

and Burritts Rapids. As a small community, most residents work in the city of Ottawa. But the village has an automotive garage and formerly had a general store/post office which permanently closed January 1, 2018. The village had two schools until 2011, when a decision was made to demolish Kars Public School in favour of an expansion of Rideau Valley Middle School. The enlarged school, renamed Kars on the Rideau Public School, is located on nearly of land and there are nearby soccer fields. Kars no longer has a summer fair, but a dog show has continued to run at the former fairgrounds site. Rideau Valley Air Park is located to the south of the village and is the base of operations for the Rideau Valley Soaring School.

References

External links

Google Earth view of Kars, Ontario

Kars Community Recreation Association
Neighbourhoods in Ottawa {{EasternOntario-geo-stub